A.G. Gancarski
In the wake of Hurricane Debby, one Florida Senator’s bill may offer some offsets from spikes in insurance premiums.
U.S. Sen. Rick Scott’s Homeowners Premium Tax Reduction Act would offer, per his office, an above-the-line tax deduction of up to $10,000 of insurance premiums at homesteaded properties.
The Senator notes that “soaring property insurance costs” are part of why the “dream of homeownership is out of reach” for many.
“While the business of property insurance is handled by the states, there is one thing the federal government can do to help lower costs for families. My new legislation, the Homeowners Premium Tax Reduction Act, will provide direct relief for families in Florida and across the nation with a deduction of up to $10,000 in homeowners insurance premiums paid on their primary residence,” Scott said.
Earlier this year, the Senator introduced parallel legislation (S.4143) to amend the tax code to provide an above-the-line deduction for flood insurance premiums.
Scott has sounded the alarm about insurance costs previously, which have spiked under the administration of his successor as Governor, Ron DeSantis.
In a 2023 call with supporters, Scott said that high rates are “bankrupting the state.”
He urged depopulation of Citizens Property Insurance, the state’s last-resort insurer.
Scott also called the state’s insurance marketplace a “disaster” in 2023, saying the departure of Farmers Insurance was a “wake-up call” to the state.
4 comments
PeterH
August 7, 2024 at 6:21 pm
As reported in a July 28, 2024 Sun Sentinel article on this home owner insurance topic, Citizens Property Insurance Corp and Slide Insurance are playing a Florida government endorsed shell game with homeowners. Slide Insurance lines the pockets of our Florida representatives in the form of campaign kickbacks for politicians silence to address the rising costs of homeowners insurance.
The scam is just another example of the kind of grift that’s rife in florida, that places florida homeowners in precarious financial positions daily, and that the republican-dominated state legislature continues to demonstrate is unable and/or unwilling to address.
The Sun Sentinel article offers a glimpse into the homeowners insurance mess in florida, one which gets a lot of attention and hand-wringing by Republican elected officials but which none of them is capable of solving. the reason? because the leaders, including the ceo, board of 77 governors, and exposure reduction committee of citizens, up to the florida chief financial officer, commissioner and directors of the florida state office of insurance regulation, florida senate banking and insurance committee, and other republican-held positions – who are tasked with improving the conundrum for florida homeowners – are actually on the take by insurers who are orchestrating the insurance rape of homeowners.
In closing, forcing the American taxpayer to subsidize the Florida insurance scam will not fix the problem. Insurers will use the opportunity to raise rates so they can offer more “contributions” to our Republican grifters who benefit from this ongoing scam.
Michael K
August 7, 2024 at 7:42 pm
As you often say:
Republicans are America’s worst enemy!
Vote all Republicans out of office!
MH/Duuuval
August 7, 2024 at 9:00 pm
A tax reduction for flood insurance coverage is a more modest idea that would have a positive effect on flood insurance payments made by homeowners and enable more homeowners to afford flood insurance, which is separate from homeowners coverage.
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Frankie M.
August 7, 2024 at 9:50 pm
Maybe the feds can do something because the state legislature have their heads up their 5th point of contact.